Don Whitney, athletic hall of fame bio

One of the finest golfers to come out of Tam during the 1950s, Whitney never lost a match during his high-school career. He played four seasons as the No. 1 man for the Indians, winning three consecutive North Bay League Championships from 1950 to 1952.

"He was an excellent golfer," said Bob Beedle, a teammate of Whitney's in football and track at Tam. "His dad was an excellent golfer. "... He taught Don to play when he could hold a club. He had one of those swings when I saw it, I knew it was pro.

"That's his favorite sport. He was still good at it up there into his 70s. He could still play very well."

While golf was Whitney's top sport, it was far from his only sport. Whitney also excelled as a football player on Tam's legendary 1951 championship team, was a starting guard on the basketball team, plus he jumped and threw the discus and the shot put for the track team.

Whitney's versatility was perhaps most evident on the football field, where he played any and every position defensively. His talents peaked in a game against Vallejo, where "He made so many tackles there were none left for the rest of us," Beedle said. "He was great. He could just play anywhere. He was an extremely well-coordinated man and he had charisma. You couldn't help but love the guy."

Whitney later served his country in the Navy and became the captain of the Ross Valley Fire Department while Beedle was its chief.

"(Whitney) delivered babies and saved a fellow firefighter who fell through a roof," Beedle said. "The roof burned out under him and he fell through it. Don, being as strong as he was, just reached down and pulled him out of a burning building."

Whitney died in 2008 at the age of 74 following a long battle with cancer. Beedle, his friend dating back to the sixth grade, will accept the award on behalf of the family.